Is There a Difference Between DWAI and DUI in Colorado?
In nearly all US states, a person can face intoxicated driving charges for behaving in an impaired manner on the road, or if a chemical test or breathalyzer shows a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of 0.08 percent or higher. The limits are much lower for motorists under the age of 21 who are not legally allowed to consume alcohol, and the limit is lowered to 0.04 percent for commercial vehicle drivers. The same is true in Colorado — you can face driving under the influence (DUI) charges if you have a BAC of 0.08 percent or higher. However, Colorado also has an intoxicated driving law that is much different from other states. In Colorado, a driver can face a different kind of drunk driving charge than a DUI — they can face a charge for driving while ability impaired, or DWAI.
To be clear, there is a difference between DWAI and DUI charges in Colorado. Our Denver DUI defense attorneys can explain.
Understanding DWAI and DUI
As we noted above, a driver in Colorado can be facing a DUI charge with a BAC of 0.08 percent or higher — the same law that exists in most other US states. Yet in Colorado, there is also a lesser offense of the DWAI.
Colorado law defines DWAI as “driving a motor vehicle or vehicle when a person has consumed alcohol or one or more drugs, or a combination of both alcohol and one or more drugs, that affects the person to the slightest degree so that the person is less able than the person ordinarily would have been…to exercise clear judgment, sufficient physical control, or due care in the safe operation of a vehicle.”
The key language in the statute is that drinking or drug use “affects the person to the slightest degree.” The driver has not consumed enough alcohol to face DUI charges, but they have still consumed alcohol such that it has affected their driving ability to the slightest degree. In general, DWAI charges can be brought if a motorist has a BAC of 0.05 percent or higher (but less than 0.08 percent, at which point the charge would be the more serious DUI).
Penalties for DWAI Versus DUI
As a lesser offense, a DWAI conviction has lesser penalties than a DUI conviction. A first-time DWAI or DUI is a misdemeanor offense, but the penalties are more serious for the DUI. First-time penalties include:
- DWAI: Up to 180 days in jail, up to a $500 fine, up to 48 hours of community service, and 8 DMV points
- DUI: Up to 1 year in jail, up to a $1,000 fine, up to 96 hours of community service, and 12 DMV points resulting in a license suspension for up to 12 months
Both DWAI and DUI first-time convictions require alcohol education courses and have DMV administrative consequences. For subsequent offenses, the penalties become more severe. If you had three or more prior convictions at the time you were pulled over for your fourth or subsequent offense, both types of subsequent offenses (DUIs and DWAIs) can be felony offenses. It does not matter how old the prior offenses may be.
Contact Our Denver DUI Defense Lawyers
Do you need help fighting DUI or DWAI charges in Colorado? An experienced Denver DUI defense attorney at DeChant Law can begin working with you today on a defense strategy. Contact us to get started.
Source:
law.justia.com/codes/colorado/2022/title-42/article-4/part-13/section-42-4-1301/
